Chapter 295: Advancement, Peerless Beyond Measure!
On the way back to Origin Star, Bai Fu, who had nothing to do, opened the Knowledge Synthesis Interface and began synthesizing Prayer Card Blueprints.
Color-quality Prayer Card Blueprints, as the highest-grade Prayer Card Blueprints, had a rather special synthesis method. One had to first synthesize the corresponding red Prayer Card Blueprint, then fuse that blueprint with various Psionic Knowledge to see if a spark of luck could be struck, producing a higher-grade Color-quality Prayer Card Blueprint.
This was a process that greatly tested one’s mindset, since in Beyond the Stars, there was no guarantee when it came to drawing cards.
Waa waa waa waa waa waa……
Bai Fu’s face was filled with failure.
「Ridiculous. Even with a Luck Bonus, it’s useless。」
Although she had long prepared herself mentally, watching her XP flow away like water only to yield nothing good still left Bai Fu helpless.
But no matter how helpless she felt, she could only continue investing.
The earlier she synthesized a Color-quality Prayer Card Blueprint, the earlier she could advance to Peerless.
For others, the step from Sovereign to Peerless might not seem that significant, but for her, the improvement would be earth-shattering.
Because once she completed the advancement, even putting aside the attribute boosts, the number of Psionic Legions she could control would skyrocket. The Prayer Angels she synthesized and the Kabaye she summoned would both surge in power. Even the Psionic NPCs she enlightened would instantly grow stronger thanks to her. Combined, these improvements would multiply her combat strength several times over.
After investing 20 billion XP consecutively, Bai Fu decided to pause and rest, to see where she was now.
She opened the game map, but to her surprise, it was covered by a layer of mist.
「Something’s wrong！」
The moment she realized the problem, several prompts rang in her ears.
【You have been subjected to Abnormal Mental Interference】
【You have been subjected to Spatial-type Esper Disturbance】
【You have been subjected to Psionic Cognition Modification Interference】
【You have triggered the Emergency Quest [Deep Space Lost Voyage]】
【Quest Introduction: ……】
【Quest Objective: Do everything possible to escape, return from the Lost Path to the normal world】
【Reward: 50 billion XP, Psionic Construct Blueprint Evolution Card1, Supreme Copycat Card1, Lost Path*1】
【Note: Failure to escape counts as mission failure】
「Another ambush？」
Bai Fu’s expression changed drastically.
From the rewards alone, it was clear that the attacker this time was no weaker than the Black Tide she had encountered previously.
Although the base XP reward wasn’t as high as that of the Black Tide Quest, the latter three rewards weren’t something a mere 30 billion XP difference could make up for. Just that Supreme Copycat Card, which could replicate any Psionicist skill below level 250, was a priceless treasure.
「Who is it? The Apostles’ Holy City? The Supernova Legion？」
Bai Fu glanced around.
To the naked eye, everything outside the spaceship looked normal, with no problems visible.
The people inside the spaceship appeared relaxed as usual—standing, sitting, chatting, playing—nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
As for herself… huh, her talent 【Exalted Moon·Night of the Eternal Night】, which allowed her to summon Hei Fu (or be summoned by Hei Fu) and switch positions with her, had been sealed. The system prompt said it was because she and Hei Fu could no longer sense each other’s location.
What kind of method was this?
Bai Fu immediately used the Heart of the Virtual Realm to search 【Lost Path】, but what came up was a pile of inexplicable nonsense. Even when she added keywords, the results didn’t change at all.
「The network is locked… or has my 【Cognition】 really been modified？」
Bai Fu immediately contacted the person in charge of this spaceship, Dmitri.
「Did you notice anything unusual？」
「Unusual？」
Dmitri carefully sensed his surroundings.
He didn’t feel anything unusual, but he believed Bai Fu wouldn’t ask such a thing for no reason. That meant they were indeed experiencing something abnormal—and something he couldn’t detect at all!
Dmitri’s face instantly turned grim.
Was this the work of someone stronger than him, a Peerless? Or some kind of unique Cosmic Treasure?
He quickly asked Bai Fu what exactly the abnormality was.
「Lost Path？」
Dmitri was stunned. He had never heard of any Cosmic Treasure with such an ability.
Seeing that she couldn’t get information from Dmitri, Bai Fu had to seek another way.
The good news was that her soul was already bound to the Ark of Heaven, which was currently in Hei Fu’s hands on Origin Star. That meant she had no fear of truly dying here.
And the Ark of Heaven offered even more benefits.
Trapped in the Lost Path, she could no longer contact the outside world through conventional means. Not only had she lost her connection with Hei Fu, but she couldn’t even tell if the feedback she received was real or tampered with. Believing such information blindly could lead to disastrous consequences.
But with the Ark of Heaven, she could effectively avoid this risk.
The Lost Path could deceive her senses, but it couldn’t deceive the information she received through the Ark.
In fact, if she had a Player with her, things would be much simpler.
But the presence of those shady Wind-rising Among the Stars Players often forced her to act away from them, lest information leak.
Bai Fu immediately contacted Hei Fu through the Ark, instructing her to inform the Rust Corps of the spaceship’s ambush. The Rust Corps then quickly reported it to the Imperial Senate. The Empire, without hesitation, immediately organized a rescue team.
However, a very real problem soon confronted the rescue team.
Rescuing people wasn’t the issue—the problem was, where were they supposed to go to rescue them?
拔劍四顧心茫然——utterly lost.
Bai Fu looked at Dmitri, and Dmitri looked back at Bai Fu.
They themselves didn’t even know where they were. No one knew exactly when or where they had entered the Lost Path, nor whether, after entering, they had remained in place, continued on their original route, or unknowingly veered off course.
Bai Fu said: 「Tell the rescue team to search along the normal route. We’ve only been out of Imperial territory for half a day. Even if we veered off course, it couldn’t have been too far. There’s no way they struck while we were still inside the Empire’s borders。」
Dmitri said: 「There’s another point. This trip was a secret mission. The only ones who could have known our departure time from the Empire and laid an ambush on the way back to Origin Star… must be insiders. Let the Empire arrest them. If we delay, that mole might escape。」
Bai Fu nodded and had Hei Fu relay both pieces of information directly to the Emperor.
She didn’t trust many others, but she did have some trust in the Emperor.
Surely this wasn’t leaked by the Emperor himself?
Why would His Majesty rebel?
Children, this was not funny.
After passing the messages, Bai Fu told Dmitri: 「The enemy probably doesn’t plan to strike immediately. Keep acting like you haven’t noticed anything. Try to stall for as much time as possible。」
Stall for time?
Did Bai Fu have some kind of plan?
Dmitri nodded. 「No problem. I’ll do everything I can to protect your safety。」
He felt a sense of mission welling up inside him.
For Bai Fu. For the Empire’s bright future!
Watching Dmitri’s retreating figure, Bai Fu couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
Who was protecting whom here?
If it came to the worst, she could simply die and resurrect through the Ark of Heaven. But the others aboard this ship… they wouldn’t be so lucky.
She had to resist. Even if she didn’t care about the Emergency Quest’s rewards, she still couldn’t just sit here and let her ambushers succeed.
Bai Fu quickly summoned a group of Tiny Hei Fus and ordered them to feed all the supplies she had acquired from the Empire—without exception—into the Sacrificial Staff.
She had originally planned to bring those supplies back to Origin Star, sort through them to upgrade her Mobile Palace, and then use the leftovers to feed the Sacrificial Staff. But now there was no time for that.
With the Tiny Hei Fus getting to work, Bai Fu herself resumed synthesizing Prayer Cards.
Wasn’t it just XP she needed?
“If you want it that badly, then watch me drown you in it！”
As it turned out, Bai Fu’s luck wasn’t especially good, but it definitely wasn’t bad either.
After throwing in over six billion XP, she finally heard the long-awaited system prompt.
The first prompt was——
【You have obtained a new Prayer Card Blueprint［Endless Domain of Darkness (Color)］】
This card was an advanced version of 【Dark Vortex】, simultaneously carrying multiple effects—damage, imprisonment, stat reduction, stamina reduction—while also boasting a vast area of effect.
The second prompt was——
【You have completed three Awakening Quests】
Success！
Bai Fu clenched her fist tightly.
At this very moment, what was there left to wait for?
“Whether I can actually defeat those people is hard to say, but my upgrade speed should be enough to give them nightmares for quite some time！”
Bai Fu swiftly opened her Attribute Panel and tapped the Upgrade button.
Buzz！
20 billion XP fell.
Even though it was only a single-level increase, it was like spring rain falling on a bamboo grove, or sparks landing on dry leaves. In that instant, Bai Fu felt all the psionic power in her body begin to boil.
This was the boiling of a vast ocean！
This was the transcendence of life！
【Awakening Successful】
【You have unlocked the new Class［Lord of Darkness］, current level Lv1, Strength +5, Agility +5, Constitution +7, Intelligence +2, Spirit +2, Inspiration +15, Attribute Points +15】
【You have completed the Third Awakening. On the path of evolution, you have broken through a new bottleneck and gained the qualification for Life Sublimation！】
【Sovereign-rank Talent Bonus［Domain of the Sovereign］removed】
【You have obtained Peerless-rank Talent Bonus［Peerless Beyond Measure］】
【You have obtained the new Talent［Dark Emperor］】
【You have obtained the new Talent［Apocalyptic Holy Lord］】
【Your Talent［Faith’s Blessing］has advanced into［God of Eternity］】
【You have comprehended the new Skill［Heart of Supreme Purity］】
【Your Skill［Blessing of the Mind］has advanced into［Blessing of the God of the Ethereal Realm］】
Bai Fu first opened the description for her newly acquired Talent 【Peerless Beyond Measure】.
Inspiration +30%, all other stats +20%;
All Resistances +50%;
Physical Damage Reduction +5%, Mental Toughness +50%, HP Recovery Rate +300%, Psionic Recovery Rate +300%.
Each 1 point of Inspiration converted into +50 Psionic Value;
All Psionic Skills: -30% cost, +150% effect;
Prayer Card Effectiveness +200% (bonus scales further with level);
Domain·Peerless.
Compared to a Sovereign’s Domain, the Peerless Domain wasn’t just stronger in effect and range—it also had a new function: True Spirit summons within the Domain, when injured, could automatically fuse with nearby injured True Spirit summons, healing while temporarily boosting some stats.
Bai Fu already had a similar ability, but it required active use and drained her heavily. Now, it had become a fully automated intelligent effect—a massive improvement.
【Dark Emperor】and 【Apocalyptic Holy Lord】were Talents that any Psionic wielder of the Darkness or Apocalypse attributes would inevitably awaken upon advancing to Peerless.
Both Talents had similar effects: +10% Base Psionic Capacity, greatly enhanced affinity with that attribute (casting speed, conversion efficiency, etc.), +50% base effect for that attribute’s skills while reducing damage taken from them, and strengthened True Spirit summons of that attribute.
These two Talents were essentially miniature Domain auras. Though their skill boost was only 50%, the combined 20% increase to Base Psionic Capacity elevated Bai Fu’s endurance to a whole new level.
“Incredible. This Psionic increase is nearly the same as instantly gaining over 1700 points of Inspiration！”
Bai Fu drew in a sharp breath. Her Psionic Capacity was now over two million.
After 【Faith’s Blessing】advanced into 【God of Eternity】, its effects leapt forward dramatically.
Originally, the bonus only applied when allied Psionic summons on the field had a total energy level over 【5000】. Now the system introduced three thresholds: 5000, 10,000, and 20,000. At maximum, the bonus could grant +500 Inspiration, +300% Psionic Recovery Speed, and +200% HP Recovery Speed.
As long as Bai Fu summoned her Psionic Legion normally, she could easily max out the buff.
【Heart of Supreme Purity】sounded flashy, but its actual effect could be summed up in a sentence: when activated, it greatly enhanced anti-interference resistance and drastically boosted the chance of perceiving reality within illusions—preventing her from falling victim to hallucinations, mental disturbances, and similar debuffs.
“Eyes filled with innocence, huh?”
Bai Fu curled her lip.
She activated the skill and scanned her surroundings. Looking outside the spaceship again, the scene she saw was indeed different from before.
It was a strange starry sky, one she couldn’t recall ever seeing.
Excellent. Very useful skill！
Bai Fu’s gaze fell to the final prompt.
【Blessing of the Mind】was a second-phase burst skill that temporarily boosted stats by consuming Psionic Energy. Its advanced form, 【Blessing of the God of the Ethereal Realm】, worked similarly but had new details.
The first invoked the Apostles of the Ethereal Realm for blessing, while the latter invoked the God of Psionics. Attribute ratios remained the same, but the advanced version added an HP recovery effect—consuming 10 Psionic Energy to restore 1 HP.
Truthfully, this conversion rate wasn’t high, and the skill itself consumed 50% of Psionic Energy to activate.
Normally, this could only serve as an emergency lifesaver to avoid being one-shotted.
But Bai Fu had Yulia, the “Magic Cat,” and by activating her previously learned 【Ethereal Form】skill from Advanced Knowledge, she could siphon Psionic Energy from her summoned True Spirits.
This allowed her to use the skill as a regular priest-like heal. Every time the cooldown reset, she could click it for an instant 100,000–200,000 HP recovery—further raising her survivability.
“Damn, that’s insane！”
Bai Fu could hardly contain her joy.
Cheerfully, she opened the Life Sublimation interface. Just one more step, and she would truly be Peerless.
【Your Life Force and Psionic Fusion have surpassed the evolutionary threshold. You have qualified for Life Sublimation. You are about to evolve into your Exclusive Peerless Race】
【Please name your Exclusive Race】
“Eternal Night！”
【Sublimation in progress, please wait】
Boiling psionic energy washed through Bai Fu’s body as the progress bar began climbing slowly. It would take tens of minutes, perhaps longer—but once begun, it could not be interrupted. Even if Bai Fu was killed, upon revival she would continue her Sublimation.
“Perfect.”
Bai Fu let out a long breath.
She stood and stretched.
For her, the process felt relatively calm. But for everyone nearby, what they saw was a storm！
“This is……”
Inside the spaceship, Dmitri was the first to notice the anomaly.
No mistake—the burst of power just now… it was Peerless-rank energy fluctuations！
Dmitri never linked it to Bai Fu.
But that wasn’t his fault—it was Bai Fu’s fault for not following convention.
Normally, a Sovereign advancing to Peerless would find a safe place to avoid disturbances. But Bai Fu was one of a kind.
In Dmitri’s view, this meant the ambushers were making their move！
Soon enough, the ambushers also noticed the anomaly. Like Dmitri, they didn’t connect it to Bai Fu—they assumed it came from Dmitri himself.
“Peerless-level energy fluctuations? Could it be Dmitri has already realized something’s wrong？”
One of Titan Industries’ elite, Thunderblade, looked solemnly at the others.
“Should we strike now?”
Titan Industries’ original plan was to lure the spaceship far away from the Rebirth Empire before attacking. But only half a day had passed, and moving now would raise the risks.
After a few minutes of debate, they decided to attack immediately.
Since they were already exposed, there was no point waiting.
“Dmitri has already completed three Divinity Transformations, and his powers are very unusual. Be cautious when fighting him！”
“Don’t worry, I’ve known that for a long time. That old man once injured me with a sneak attack. This time I’ll return the favor and let him taste what it’s like to be ambushed！”
“Capturing Bai Fu will be your responsibility, Gagliani.”
The Peerless named Gagliani chuckled coldly: “A mere Sovereign. Even if she could rival an ordinary Peerless, she’ll never escape my grasp！”
The others nodded, trusting his words.
Titan Industries didn’t intend to kill Bai Fu directly—they planned to capture her and lock her in the Black Chamber, making her serve them.
“Attack！”
With that order, Titan Industries’ ambushers turned into streaks of light and shot toward the distant spaceship.
It was time to let the Star Sea witness the true strength of Titan Industries！